Om Sai Baba Hospital

Is depression eating you up from within? Are you facing severe emotional meltdown? Emotional disturbances can ruin your life, and this is why you have to look for the best preventive ways. You can have a consultation with any counsellor so that you can share your problems. Your counsellor will definitely help you to get some potential way-out. 

Best ways for preventing emotional meltdown:

-  Detecting the signs: The actual signs of emotional meltdown need to be detected and then only you can get rid of the same. Both your facial expressions and behavioural changes are to be observed carefully as these will help you to detect the signs. If you are remaining silent for most of the times, then there is something going on in your mind for sure. 

-  Early intervention: you should rely on your intuition or sixth sense so that you can sense the troubles you are going to face. You should have a good observation power so that you can sense things easily. Remain quiet and calm so that you can take the right decisions. 

-  Living well: you need to choose a completely healthy way of living, otherwise you will never get freedom from emotional troubles. Do not think much about past incidents, rather you should look forward so that you can go ahead. You should develop only positive mentality in order to discharge your duties in a perfect manner. Remain happy and keep everybody happy, and then only you will be able to get the actual essence of life. Healthy eating and good habits are also needed so that your life can become more lively and refreshing. 

-  Have proper communication: If you think that your friends or family members are pretty reliable, then you can openly communicate with them. This would help you to get mental relief and relaxation.  If you open up your emotions and share them with anybody, then you will feel relaxed and your mind will be calm at all times. 

-  Have counselling: It is not always possible to share all your secrets with your loved ones, and this is the reason you have to look for the most reliable option. You can go for thorough counselling, and this can help you to get rid of depressing thoughts and other mental troubles. In this case, you have to look for the best counsellor in your locality so that you can disclose all your hidden secrets.

Human bones are continuously being removed and formed, which is necessary for its proper maintenance. However, in certain cases, especially with aging, some bones and joints will be worn down to an extent where the body will not be able to reform them. This is especially true in the case of hips, which may become worn due to age or other problems within the body. 

Hip replacement surgery: 
When this happens, a hip replacement surgery can be performed to replace the original joints with a prosthesis or artificial hip, which is usually made out of metal or a specially formed composite material or even a combination of the two. Along with other parts, it replaces the natural hip with an artificial hip to restore mobility and other related functions.

Benefits of hip replacement surgery:

1. Lessening hip pain: This is one of the major factors as well as symptoms of requiring hip replacement surgery. Due to the grinding down of the bones, even the slightest movement causes pain and after the surgery and the recovery period, the pain is lessened.
2. Correction of bone deformity: When the bones grind down and are abnormally reformed, deformities may occur reducing mobility. Artificial hips will ensure that deformities are corrected and resulting problems are thus eliminated.
3. Return to normal activities: This is possibly one of the primary advantages of this surgery, although it entails a long recovery period. However, most patients can get back to their normal activities and are able to resume a pain free life.
4. Ability to have painless sleep: Many people who suffer from hip displacements or bone deformities are not able to sleep properly due to pain. After the surgery and the recovery period, they can return to normal functions and habits, thus are able to sleep properly.
5. Leg strength increase: Many patients tend to have an increase in their leg strength as one side of the hip tends to become very weak due to bone problems before surgery. After surgery and recovery, the same side tends to have an increased strength due to the implant.
6. In most cases a lifelong solution to hip problems: As the hip replacement prosthesis is made out of metal and if the operation is successful, it usually tends to last till the end of a person's life and this area usually doesn't tend to have problems again.

You might be an elite athlete or just a commoner. There is always a possibility for you to develop back pain while carrying out your daily activities. You might not be aware, but regular activities—like sitting at the computer, running on the treadmill or simply crawling into your bed for a good night's sleep—can affect the health of your spine. You are always at the risk of damaging your spine. These damages lead to back pain. It has been found that faulty postures can cause back pain by causing straining of the back muscles, injuring the tendons and damaging the vertebrae or ligaments. Back pain can be caused due to the overuse of a particular activity or for undertaking a new activity. Besides all these possibilities, most people put the blame on their discs for back pain.

What Are The Discs?

The human spine is composed of 24 bony vertebrae. These are placed one on top of the other. There is a thin intervertebral disc between each vertebrae. These discs look like jam doughnuts. They are made up of a hard outer shell known as the annulus fibrosis. They have a soft, jelly-like inner core known as the nucleus pulposus. They are shock absorbers.

What Happens To The Discs When An Injury Occurs?

The jelly-like softcore in the discs can often get shifted as a result of the accident or injury. Thus, the discs become a reason behind back pain. The pain could be due to the problems with the disc while carrying out tasks like —

1. Prolonged sitting

2. Bending

3. Lifting

4. Twisting

5. Pulling

Symptoms Of Disc-Related Pain:

Symptoms tend to vary due to the nature of the injury and the damage caused. However, some common symptoms have been listed below:

1. Localised back pain

2. Pain in thighs, lower legs and feet

3. Tingling sensations

4. Numbness or muscular weakness

Treatment-

It is best to consult a doctor to know about the treatment needed for back pain related to disc. Initial treatment after detection of the problem includes the following ways:

1. Intake of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and pain medication.

2. Application of heat and ice packs.

3. Physiotherapy.

4. Home exercise program as suggested by the doctor.

5. Practicing of core and lumbar strengthening exercises.

One must stop movements that aggravate the pain and don’t take difficult physical activities. You must take adequate rest to set things right.

Do You Need Any Surgery?

It is not always needed for all disc related problems. Most issues with the disc vanish after a week. Surgery is sought only after nonsurgical treatments prove useless. The decision must be taken by a doctor.

Are you unhappy with the results of shaving, waxing or tweezing for removing the unwanted hair from your body? You should opt for laser hair reduction for this purpose, which is considered to be much more effective than the regular methods. Laser hair reduction is a very common cosmetic procedure which is undertaken popularly.

It involves the exposure of your body hair follicles to beams of highly concentrated laser light. The pigments present in your follicles absorb this light, which results in the destruction of the hair.

Benefits of Laser Hair Removal-

Lasers are quite effective in reducing unwanted hair from areas such as the legs, face, arms, underarms and other different body parts. The various benefits of laser hair reduction include the following:

1. Precision: Lasers can target dark, coarse hairs selectively without causing any damage to the surrounding skin.

2. Speed: Every pulse of laser takes less than a fraction of a second, during which many hairs are treated together. The laser is capable of treating an area which is the size of a quarter within a second. Areas such as the upper lips take less than one minute to be treated, while large areas may require an hour.

3. Predictability: The results of laser hair reduction are highly predictable and most people get to have permanent hair loss after undertaking three to seven treatment sessions.

Procedure-

Your hair, which will get treated is usually trimmed to a few millimeters above your skin surface. The laser device is adjusted according to your hair colour, thickness and location.

You will be made to wear proper eye protection, depending on the type of laser being used. The outer layers of your skin are also protected using a cold gel or a cooling device. This helps the laser to penetrate your skin. After this, a full pulse light is exposed to the area concerned. After completion of the process, you will be given ice packs, cold water and anti-inflammatory creams for easing any discomfort you feel.

For a few days after a laser hair reduction session, your treated skin area may look and feel like a sunburn. You need to apply moisturisers for healing. You can wear make-up if the treatment has been undertaken on your skin. The treated hair falls out within the next month. You should wear sunscreen for preventing colour changes on your treated skin area. In people with a dark complexion, blisters are sometimes likely.

Living with anxiety on a daily basis can be really stressful. And while you are dealing with anxiety it is very important not to sway away with the symptoms and commit yourself to a treatment. For instant release of anxiety you really don't need to go for a vacation or to the spa or a weekend retreat. It is easy to beat anxiety within 5-15 minutes from your home. So don't think and instantly reduce your anxiety to give yourself a wonderful day.

Here are 5 tips to instantly reduce your anxiety:

1. Meditation: Meditation for a few minutes daily helps relieve anxiety. As per a research, doing meditation daily changes the neural pathways of the brain thereby making it more flexible towards stress. Meditation is the simplest way to beat anxiety. All you have to do is just sit straight with feet on the floor and closed eyes. Next just focus your energy on reciting a mantra.

2. Deep Breathing: A 5 minute breathing regime is a sure shot to relieve anxiety. Sit straight with closed eyes and place your hands on your abdomen. First start with slow inhalation of air through the nose. Feel the breath through your abdomen and head and then reverse the process by exhaling it out through the mouth. Psychologists state that deep breathing helps to bring down stress and anxiety by lowering the blood pressure.

3. Laugh Aloud: A good laugh is nice way to shed off the stress and anxiety. When you laugh chemical endorphins are released which elevate your mood. A good laugh also lowers the cortisol levels which are the stress hormone.

4. Talk to someone: Distracting yourself by talking to friends and family helps. The mind starts wandering when in anxiety and alone and the effective technique to talk to some trusted person helps. The support you get from family and friends just boosts you back and wards you off from the symptoms. In case of a panic attack you can request the company of a friend and relative to watch over you.

5. Trick your Anxious Thoughts: Anxiety does not happen suddenly but is due to the mind's tendency to have negative thoughts spiraling day in and day out and the worse is that you have no control over the thoughts. Learn to tame these thoughts and the triggers which cause these to keep anxiety at bay. There are strategies which you can try to help you keep anxious thoughts away. There are:

a. Question yourself when you experience anxiety. A long checklist helps you make your thoughts more realistic.
b. Give affirmations to yourself that everything is okay, you will get over the situation. Usually affirmations are made to comfort one.
c. Know the physical symptoms as many times physical sensations like in case of a panic attack tend to trigger anxiety and stress. When you get used to the symptoms the mind does not send signals for anxiety to the brain. Create exercise to habituate yourself to a panic attack.

There is no cure for anxiety but the fastest way to get your anxiety under control is to simply manage it.

Depression is a serious yet common mental health problem that can affect all age groups ranging from young children to the elderly. It is found to be more common among women when compared to men. It can take a toll over one’s peace of mind, physical health, interpersonal relationships as well as job performance (or academic performance). What is deceiving is, the person can also be functioning well, in which case, it can go unnoticed, leading to grave consequences. The good news is that depression is treatable and individuals are able to function much better with treatment. Affected individuals feel sad most of the time. He/she loses the ability to enjoy/be happy. 

As a result of this, the daily activities that he/she participates in do not seem to appeal to him/her anymore. This is especially true in the case of socialising. The affected person will just seem to drop out of social circles. This can be said to be ironic because it is times like these when the individual with depression is in need of friends the most! 

The individual seems to have an overriding belief that the status quo will not be altered by anything and he or she will be stuck in a rut in perpetuity. In other words, depressed people experience a perennial feeling of helplessness. Negative thoughts can also drive one to commit suicide. 

A lot of people who have depression tend to experience a loss of energy. As a matter of fact, this is quite the case with men who enter a phase of depression, as the symptoms which are displayed by them can contrast sharply to those displayed by women. One of the reasons for men tending to report a higher chance of this than women is the fact that they are less likely to express feelings of self loathing. Rather, they usually talk about sleep problems and a loss of interest in things that once they might have found to be interesting or even captivating. They also gradually get quite irritable.

When it comes to women, guilt is quite likely to be felt. They may also sleep a lot longer than what is considered to be normal. Eating habits are a better indication of the presence or absence of depression than most people would realise. Overeating is one of the prime signs, especially in the case of women who are depressed. This leads to them putting on weight, as the rise in the intake of food is compounded by a drop in the amount of healthy physical activity. On the other hand, many may also experience loss of appetite, which over a period of time can even lead to weight loss. Some women who are depressed also complain of aches and pains in the body.

A few individuals who are depressed also complain of weird experiences, like being able to hear voices calling out to them, abusing them in dirty language, asking them to hurt themselves (hallucinations). Some may be found to be extremely suspicious about people around them.

You often consume a much higher amount of sugar than you should actually, as it is widely present in a very high number of foods and beverages. Research suggests that this excessive sugar consumption may ultimately be very harmful for your health - and that it may badly harm your skin. Experts believe that too much intake of sugar can make your skin look wrinkled or dull, and also lead to a host of other skin-related disorders. Here are the ways in which excessive sugar consumption affects your skin:

1. Causes inflammation: Inflammation, caused by excess sugar intake, can be really damaging for the body - especially because it negatively impacts your immune system, and may lead to frequent breakouts on the skins and increased chances of pimples or warts.
2. Increases wrinkling: Sugar's inflammatory properties not only lead to breakouts on the skin, but also cause wrinkles. Collagen, which is essential for healthy, supple skin, is broken down by sugar, which makes the skin look dehydrated and dull, also increasing the chances of premature wrinkling.
3. Causes imbalances in blood sugar level: Excessive sugar consumption causes irregularities in blood sugar levels by initially increasing sugar levels, which then reduces when insulin in released into your cells. It often ends up making you hungry, moody or shaky and increases stress levels leading to dull looking skin.
4. Leads to occurrence of acne: Increased intake of sugar results in stimulation of hormone levels which raises sebum production and in turn affects growth of skin cells. This may be reason of acne.

What is Chronic Kidney Disease?

Chronic Kidney Disease (also known as Chronic Renal Failure) is the progressive loss of kidney function occurring over a span of several months to several years and is characterised by the replacement of kidney architecture with interstitial fibrosis.

Chronic kidney disease is classified into five stages on the basis or proteinuria (presence of protein in large amounts in the urine) or Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) - 1 being the mildest with no distinct symptoms and 5 being end stage renal failure.

Causes and Risk Factors of Chronic Kidney Disease-

The various reasons (called risk factors) that can increase chances of Chronic Kidney Diseases are:

1. Diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia (excess fat proteins in the blood)

2. Hypertension

3. Family history heritable renal disease

4. Older age, smoking

5. Autoimmune disease

6. Past episodes of acute renal disease

The direct causes of Chronic Kidney Diseases are-

1. Diabetic nephropathy (leading cause)

2. Hypertensive nephropathy

3. Glomerulonephritis (swelling of the glomerulus in the kidneys)

4. Reno-vascular disease (ischemic nephropathy)

5. Polycystic kidney disease

6. HIV-associated nephropathy

7. Transplant allograft failure

8. Exposure to drugs and toxins

Diet that you must maintain in Chronic Kidney Disease-

It is essential to make dietary as well as lifestyle amends once you are diagnosed with CKD. The main purpose of this diet is to maintain the levels of carbohydrates, fluids and minerals. This is done to prevent the buildup of waste products in the body as the kidneys are unable to fulfil its function properly.

It is recommended to refer a dietician who can make you a diet chart that helps you adhere to your diet.

Here is a list of food items that you may avoid or may consume if you are suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease:

1. Carbohydrates : Carbohydrates are a good source of energy. If the intake of protein has been restricted, then it is recommended to replace that with carbohydrates as a source of energy. Fruits, vegetables, grains and bread can be consumed as they are rich source of fibres, minerals and various types of vitamins. You can indulge in some hard candies or sweets as well.

2. Fats: Fats can provide a good amount of calories as well. Ensure that you only stick to healthy fats such as the monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that are good for your cardiac health.

3. Reduce your phosphorus intake: A diet with no more than 800 mg of phosphorus can help reduce the risk of too much phosphorus building up in your blood.  Limit intake of foods with high levels of phosphate or phosphate additives such as organ meats, whole grain breads, processed foods, cola beverages, cheese, dried beans, liver, peanut butter, dairy products and chocolate. Many beverages and processed foods have these additives. Other high-phosphorus foods to limit include:

   • Cheese
   • Chocolate
   • Ice cream
   • Legumes
   • Milk
   • Nuts
   • Seeds
   • Yogurt
4. Monitor your potassium levels: Usually, potassium is not restricted in stage 3 CKD unless lab tests show potassium is too high. Your doctor may make medication changes or prescribe a low-potassium diet. Reduce an elevated potassium level by limiting some high-potassium foods and potassium chloride (found in salt substitute and many low-sodium processed foods), such as avocado, bananas, cantaloupe, honeydew, legumes, milk, nuts, potatoes, seeds, tomato products and yogurt. Some high-potassium foods to limit or avoid include:??
   • Avocado
   • Bananas
   • Cantaloupe and honeydew melon
   • Dried fruit
   • Legumes
   • Milk
   • Nuts and seeds
   • Oranges and orange juice
   • Potatoes
   • Pumpkin and winter squash
   • Tomato products (juices, sauces, paste)
   • Yogurt
5. Proteins: Usually, before undergoing dialysis, it is recommended to adhere to a low-protein intake diet. However when you are undergoing dialysis, it is necessary to consume a certain amount of protein. This detailed information can be obtained from your dietician.

6. Fluids: In the early stages of CKD, your fluid intake is not monitored. But as the disease progresses, you need to check your intake of fluids as too much fluids may accumulate in your body and create pressure on your kidneys.

7. Sodium Or Salt Intake: Keeping a check on your salt intake reduces the risks of high blood pressure. Also, having food low on salt can reduce your thirst and prevent fluid retention in your body.

A craniofacial surgery is required when there are deformities or abnormalities present in the head or face area of the patient. Depending on the type of deformity, a craniofacial surgery is done to repair or reconstruct it.

The areas that come under a craniofacial surgeon's domain are the cranium (skull), the brain, the face, skin on the face, facial bones, and the nerves. For this reason, in order to conduct craniofacial surgery, a neurosurgeon and a cosmetic surgeon may often work together.

The time taken for completing a craniofacial surgery may vary between four hours and twelve hours.

Why do you need a craniofacial surgery?

There may be multiple reasons why a patient would require craniofacial surgery. These are:

1. Tumors in the head or face region are one of the most common causes behind this type of surgery. The surgeries conducted to remove these tumors may sometimes lead to the formation of deformities in the region. A craniofacial surgery is conducted in order to correct them.

2. This kind of surgery can also be used to correct abnormalities formed as a result of injuries or wounds on the face, the jaw or the head.

3. Some patients may also undergo a craniofacial surgery in order to correct defects that they were born with. Such defects include Apert Syndrome (a syndrome characterized by the premature fusion of certain bones in the skull), cleft palate or cleft lip and craniosynotosis (premature fusion of certain bones in the skull).

Risks related to Craniofacial Surgery:

Certain risks are associated with this type of surgery. These are:

1. A craniofacial surgery is conducted after putting the patient under general anesthesia. As a result of this, the patient may suffer from breathing problems, blood clots, infections and blood loss. He or she may also react to the medicine in an unwanted way.

2. As a result of the surgery, the patient may also lose their bone grafts partly or wholly. He or she may go through cranial nerve dysfunction or damage in the brain. The formation of permanent scars is another possible risk of a craniofacial surgery. Some patients, especially children who are of growing age, may need a follow up surgery later on.

3. Certain patients can face more risks as compared to other patients. These include patients who are malnourished, or suffer from other illnesses like lupus. Those that have suffered nerve damage in the past are likelier to develop complications. Smoking is also another risk factor.

Developed more than two hundred years ago by a German physician, Samuel Hahnemann (1755 – 1843), homoeopathy is now widely used throughout the world. Many people choose homoeopathic medicine as their primary form of treatment while others use it to complement conventional medicine.

"Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better."  -  Albert Einstein

Nature provides the cure for most ailments. Indigenous people have known this for centuries simply by observing and attuning to their surroundings. Homoeopathic medicines are made from natural substances such as plants, herbs, minerals and animal products.  Although some substances used to make homoeopathic remedies may be toxic in their natural form but once attenuated into potentized medicine their healing properties are raised/awakened and they become completely safe.

‘Homoeopathy’ comes from the Greek word homeos meaning ‘similar’ and pathos meaning ‘suffering’ and is based on the principle of ‘like cures like’ which was first identified by Hippocrates (460-350 BC). It is a system of curing diseases by medicines which are capable of producing symptoms similar to those of disease when given to healthy human beings.

What it causes, it can cure too!

This can be illustrated by a simple example of onion and homoeopathic medicine named Allium Cepa prepared from red onion. When we peel an onion, there is watering and burning of eyes and nose. According to homoeopathic principles, a person suffering from similar watering and burning of eyes and nose in case of a common cold or influenza can be treated by the medicine Allium Cepa. Likewise coffee (Coffea), a stimulant which is known to cause sleeplessness, can be one of the remedies used to treat insomnia (disturbed sleep) in a person.

Homoeopathy considers each person as an individual. We are after all, unique. To prescribe the same medicine to every person who suffers from a migraine headache, for example, would not be appropriate. Homoeopathy considers your personal susceptibility to illness, your parents’ tendencies, your personality (physical appearance, lifestyle, relationships, passions, family life, challenges, coping mechanisms) and so on.

All the above, including the specifics of your physical and emotional symptoms make you unique and are considered in choosing a right homoeopathic prescription for you.

Homoeopathy is not ‘ready-made’ but ‘tailor-made’ to suit an individual. Therefore, two people suffering even from an apparently similar looking problem are unlikely to be prescribed the same remedy. We can say that in homoeopathy we use ‘designer remedies’ designed especially for an individual.

Homoeopathic medicine treats the person as a whole (“the holistic approach”) rather than treating specific symptoms in isolation. Most people are aware that emotional imbalances such as grief, shock and anger can lead to physical illness if left untreated or suppressed. The opposite is also true. Physical pain can cause depression, anxiety and stress. Homoeopathic treatment helps release emotions and physical blockages to restore balance between the body, mind and spirit.

According to homoeopathy, mind and body are very much linked and physical problems cannot be effectively cured without understanding and putting right the person’s constitution and character. Constitution is a person’s state of health, including his or her temperament and any inherited and acquired characteristics. To determine the constitution of a person a homoeopath usually asks a lot many questions.

Homoeopathy believes that if your constitution is healthy, you will not succumb to any infection, i.e. disease organisms will not affect you if your susceptibility is low. This is the basic difference between homoeopathy and any other system of medicine. Conventional system of medicines believes that one becomes sick due to infection, i.e. bacterias and viruses, hence their treatment is aimed at killing the infection using strong drugs.

This, however, further reduces the immunity of the person making it weaker and the person becomes more susceptible and falls sick again and again. Homoeopathy, however, believes that first your constitution becomes weak and then you become susceptible to infection.  Bacteriae and viral attacks are the end products of disease process and not the cause of disease. They are present everywhere but they will not affect you until your immunity is strong.

The treatment is aimed at raising the vitality, i.e. immunity of the person so that he can fight out the disease himself. Homoeopathy does not introduce artificial antibodies in the body; it wakes up the body to do the job on its own. This is why homoeopathy is able to cure permanently without frequent remissions. However, medicines are given in highly diluted (potentized) form and are therefore extremely safe and have no side-effects.

We all get immunised by vaccinations which are essentially homoeopathic in principle.

To learn the healing properties of medicines, they are administered to healthy individuals and the symptoms are recorded to analyse the drug. This method of drug proving ensures that homoeopathic medicines are safe and have no side effects. Each one of them is tested on thousands of volunteers coming from various age groups, gender and walks of life.

Effect of homoeopathy evident in newborn babies and comatose patients prove that it just isn’t a placebo effect.

It is safe and effective for pregnant woman too.